Modular living wall system

ABSTRACT

Embodiments include but are not limited to modular living wall systems. A module of a modular living wall system may include a frame including a plurality of rails, each rail coupled to another rail by their respective ends, and a fabric arrangement mounted onto the frame and including a first fabric and a second fabric overlaying the first fabric, wherein the first fabric is a hydrophilic mat, and wherein the second fabric includes at least one opening exposing the first fabric and configured to receive a plant. The living wall system includes integrated irrigation. Other embodiments may be described and/or claimed.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application claims priority to U.S. Provisional PatentApplication No. 61/531,535, filed Sep. 6, 2011, the entire specificationof which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety for allpurposes.

TECHNICAL FIELD

Embodiments of the present invention relate generally to living wallsand more particularly to a modular living wall system including anintegrated irrigation network.

BACKGROUND

Living walls, also known as biowalls or green walls, may allow forplants to be incorporated into a vertical structure such as a wall.While traditional structures, such as trellises and arbors, may providea vertical means for growing certain limited varieties of climbingplants, these structures typically require weeks, months, or longer forthe structures to be covered by vegetation.

More recent vertical planting structures may provide for bags, ledges,or hanging plant pots to be distributed onto a structure for receivingplants and soil or other planting medium. The frame of the structure istypically a cumbersome singular structure made of plywood, plastic, oranother material, and the plants are either naturally watered by rain oris manually watered. While these structures may be suitable for someapplications, it is known that hanging bags tend to tear or otherwisedeteriorate from due to the weight of the plant, soil, and water, orfrom the growth of the root structure of the plants. The knowncontainers may also provide limited space in which the plant roots cangrow, which may impact the health of the plants. Moreover, unless thestructure is manually watered on a regular basis, there may be someareas that are wetter or drier than others, which may lead to algae ormold in some areas or under-watered plants in other areas.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Embodiments of the present invention will be readily understood by thefollowing detailed description in conjunction with the accompanyingdrawings. To facilitate this description, like reference numeralsdesignate like structural elements. Embodiments of the invention areillustrated by way of example and not by way of limitation in thefigures of the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 illustrates an example top clip or rail of a frame of a module ofa modular living wall system, in accordance with various embodiments ofthe present invention.

FIG. 2 illustrates an example left clip or rail and an example rightclip or rail of a frame of a module of a modular living wall system, inaccordance with various embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 3 illustrates an example bottom clip or rail and an example middleclip or rail of a frame of a module of a modular living wall system, inaccordance with various embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 4A illustrates a front view of an example fabric of a fabricarrangement configured to receive one or more plants and for mountingonto a frame of a module of a modular living wall system, in accordancewith various embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 4B depicts a cross-section diagram of the fabric arrangement for anexample interior system and an example exterior system, in accordancewith various embodiments.

FIG. 5 illustrates a front view of an example fabric of a fabricarrangement configured to overlay another fabric such as, for example,the fabric illustrated in FIG. 4A, and for mounting onto a frame of amodule of a modular living wall system, in accordance with variousembodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 6 illustrates an exploded axonometric view of the assemblyarrangement of the module components described in FIGS. 1-5, inaccordance with various embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 7 illustrates a perspective view of a frame structure including asupport rail, in accordance with various embodiments of the presentinvention.

FIG. 8 illustrates a plan view of a modular living wall systemintegrated with an existing building structure, in accordance withvarious embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 9 illustrates a section view of a modular living wall systemintegrated with an existing building structure, in accordance withvarious embodiments of the present invention.

FIGS. 10-15 illustrate components of a basin assembly of the modularliving wall module, in accordance with various embodiments of thepresent invention.

FIGS. 16-18 illustrate frame elements that enclose or finish the modulecomponents of the modular living wall system, in accordance with variousembodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 19 illustrates a configuration for a metal support frame to railwith clip and basin, in accordance with various embodiments of thepresent invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION

In the following detailed description, reference is made to theaccompanying drawings which form a part hereof wherein like numeralsdesignate like parts throughout, and in which is shown by way ofillustration embodiments in which the invention may be practiced. It isto be understood that other embodiments may be utilized and structuralor logical changes may be made without departing from the scope of thepresent invention. Therefore, the following detailed description is notto be taken in a limiting sense, and the scope of embodiments inaccordance with the present invention is defined by the appended claimsand their equivalents.

Various operations may be described as multiple discrete operations inturn, in a manner that may be helpful in understanding embodiments ofthe present invention; however, the order of description should not beconstrued to imply that these operations are order dependent. Moreover,some embodiments may include more or fewer operations than may bedescribed.

The description may use the phrases “in an embodiment,” “inembodiments,” “in some embodiments,” or “in various embodiments,” whichmay each refer to one or more of the same or different embodiments.Furthermore, the terms “comprising,” “including,” “having,” and thelike, as used with respect to embodiments of the present invention, aresynonymous.

The term “coupled to,” along with its derivatives, may be used herein.“Coupled” may mean one or more of the following. “Coupled” may mean thattwo or more elements are in direct physical or electrical contact.However, “coupled” may also mean that two or more elements indirectlycontact each other, but yet still cooperate or interact with each other,and may mean that one or more other elements are coupled or connectedbetween the elements that are said to be coupled to each other.

For the purposes of the present invention, the phrase “A/B” means A orB. The phrase “A and/or B” means “(A), (B), or (A and B).” The phrase“at least one of A, B, and C” means “(A), (B), (C), (A and B), (A andC), (B and C), or (A, B and C).” The phrase “(A)B” means “(B) or (AB),”that is, A is an optional element.

Various embodiments of the present invention are directed to a modularliving wall system including an integrated irrigation network.

FIGS. 1-3 illustrate the various components of a frame (e.g., underlyingframe) of a module of a modular living wall system, in accordance withvarious embodiments of the present invention. FIG. 1 illustrates anexample top rail of a frame, FIG. 2 illustrates an example left rail andan example right rail of a frame, and FIG. 3 illustrates an examplebottom rail and an example middle rail of a frame. In variousembodiments, the top rail of FIG. 1 may be cut and formed from 0.063″aluminum and may be bent to the outer dimensions shown. In variousembodiments, the left rail and right rail of FIG. 2 may have a same flatpattern that, when bent, are mirror images. The left rail and the rightrail may be cut and formed from 16-ga aluminum (0.050″). In variousembodiments, the bottom rail and middle rail of FIG. 3 may be cut andformed from 16-ga aluminum (0.050″). The bottom rail may be symmetricabout central horizontal and vertical axes. The middle rail may besymmetric about a central vertical axis. The components of FIGS. 1-3 mayinclude other materials, dimensions, or configurations in otherembodiments. Once coupled, the rails may form a substantiallyrectangular underlying framework (e.g., 2 panel section of FIG. 7) for amodule of a modular living wall system (e.g., modular living wall systemof FIGS. 8-9).

FIGS. 4A-B and 5 illustrate example fabrics for a fabric arrangement ofa modular living wall system. FIG. 4A illustrates a front view of anexample fabric of a fabric arrangement configured to receive one or moreplants and for mounting onto a frame (e.g., underlying frame) of amodule of a modular living wall system, while FIG. 5 illustrates a frontview of an example fabric of a fabric arrangement configured to overlayanother fabric such as, for example, the fabric illustrated in FIG. 4A,and for mounting onto a frame (e.g., underlying frame) of a module of amodular living wall system. FIG. 4B depicts a cross-section diagram ofthe fabric arrangement for an example interior system and an exampleexterior system, in accordance with various embodiments. FIG. 6illustrates an exploded axonometric view of the assembly arrangement ofthe module components described in FIGS. 1-5, in accordance with variousembodiments of the present invention. FIG. 6 may depict the underlyingframe (e.g., aluminum frame) as it relates to the fabric arrangement andother components.

In various embodiments, holes of the example fabric of FIG. 4A may havea diameter of 0.128″ (e.g., 0.125″ diameter with a 0.003″ tolerance),external corners may be rounded with a 0.5″ radius, and pockets may haveouter dimension of 5.5″×0.188″ with a 3/32″ rounded edge radius. Invarious embodiments, holes of the example fabric of FIG. 5 may have adiameter of 0.128″ (e.g., 0.125″ diameter with a 0.003″ tolerance),external corners may be rounded with a 0.5″ radius, and the holes mayalign with a front geotextile pattern from lower-right corner. Thecomponents of FIGS. 4A-B and FIG. 5 may include other materials,dimensions, or configurations in other embodiments.

Embodiments of the modular living wall system may be configured to beeasily mounted and customized (in size and/or shape). Moreover, themodular design may be appropriate for indoor and outdoor applications.The modular living wall system may comprise an underlying frame and afabric arrangement mounted onto the underlying frame and including afirst fabric (e.g., fabric of FIG. 5) and a second fabric (e.g., fabricof FIG. 4A) overlaying the first fabric, wherein the first fabric is ahydrophilic mat, and wherein the second fabric includes at least oneopening exposing the first fabric and configured to receive a plant. Invarious embodiments, the sturdy fabric system or arrangement may beconfigured to allow for plant roots to spread between separate openings.The separate openings may also allow for tailoring the soil mix to theindividual plants. The fabric system may also be configured to reduceexcessive wet and dry spots by providing a more uniform wetness acrossthe structure.

In various embodiments, the edges of the first fabric and the secondfabric may be coupled to the underlying frame using metal rivets orother suitable fastener. The edges of the first fabric may also becoupled to corresponding edges of the second fabric using metal rivetsor other suitable fastener. In various embodiments, the body of thefirst fabric (i.e., the parts of the first fabric other than the edges)may be coupled to the body (i.e., the parts of the second fabric otherthan the edges) of the second fabric. A substantial portion of thebodies of the fabric may be uncoupled, allowing the roots of plants roomto grow and expand across the module. The first fabric and/or the secondfabric may be treated, formulated, or otherwise configured to reducealgae and microbial growth.

In some embodiments, the second fabric (e.g., front geotextile fabric)includes at least one opening exposing the first fabric (e.g., backgeotextile fabric) and configured to receive a plant, as can be seen.The second fabric may be a hydrophilic mat. The second fabric may varyin make up dependent on a location of the modular living wall system. Inembodiments where an interior system is used (e.g., indoors, see FIG.4B), the second fabric may include a hydrophilic layer, an open cellfoam layer overlaying the hydrophilic layer, and a perforated membraneoverlaying the hydrophilic layer such that the open cell foam layer isbetween the hydrophilic layer and the perforated membrane. Inembodiments where an exterior system is used (e.g., outdoors, see FIG.4B), the second fabric may consist of a hydrophilic mat. The hydrophilicmat of the second fabric in an exterior system may be heavier than thehydrophilic mat of the first fabric. The hydrophilic mat of the secondfabric in an exterior system may have a thickness that is greater than athickness of the hydrophilic mat of the first fabric.

The second fabric may be arranged such that the hydrophilic layer abutsor is otherwise coupled in direct physical contact with the first fabric(e.g., at the rivet). The fabric arrangement may be mounted onto theframe by a plurality of rivets or other fasteners (e.g., snaps). Therivets may include a first type of rivets to the fabric only, which holdthe first and second fabric of the fabric arrangement together andrivets to the frame and fabric, which hold the fabric arrangementtogether with the frame. The rivets may be configured (e.g., spaced) toallow roots of the plants to spread between separate openings in thesecond fabric. An edge of the first fabric may be coupled to an edge ofthe second fabric in some embodiments and edges of the first fabric andthe second fabric may be coupled to the frame (e.g., using rivets orfasteners). In some embodiments, a body of the first fabric may beseparate from a body of the second fabric (e.g., See FIG. 4B, the bodyof the first fabric may be separate from the body of the second fabricat the soil pockets that contain the plants and between the pockets toallow for the roots of the plants to not be constrained by the pockets).

FIG. 7 illustrates a perspective view of a frame structure (e.g.,underlying frame referred to as “support frame” in FIG. 7) coupled witha support rail, in accordance with various embodiments of the presentinvention. The frame structure may include a plurality (e.g., four ormore) rails coupled to each other to form a substantially rectangularshape, as can be seen. The depicted frame structure may correspond withtwo modules of a multi-module living wall system in some embodiments(e.g., each panel of the 2 panel section may correspond with onemodule).

Multiple modules can be coupled to each other to form a living wallsystem. In various embodiments, a first module (e.g., a first panel) anda second module (e.g., a second panel) may interlock such that the railof the first module abuts the rail of the second module (e.g., as can beseen in the frame structure of FIG. 7). The living wall system mayinclude additional modules similarly configured as the first module andthe second module (e.g., to meet a customer's needs). In someembodiments, multiple modules may be connected to a support rail (e.g.,a structural U-shaped aluminum rail as depicted) using, for example,channel nuts to facilitate securing of the modular living wall system toan existing building structure building in various configurations. SeeFIGS. 6-9.

FIG. 8 illustrates a plan view of a modular living wall systemintegrated with an existing building structure, in accordance withvarious embodiments of the present invention. FIG. 9 illustrates asection view of a modular living wall system integrated with an existingbuilding structure, in accordance with various embodiments of thepresent invention. It is noted that the attachment shown in FIG. 9 isfor a wood frame. In other embodiments, other suitable attachmenttechniques may be used to couple the modular living wall system with anexisting building structure.

According to various embodiments, the modular living wall system mayinclude an irrigation system. The described embodiments may provide amodular structure that is substantially self-watering by an irrigationnetwork. In various embodiments, the modular living wall system may beconfigured such that water that drips from the modular living wallsystem may be captured in a basin or the like and re-used by theirrigation system for watering the modular living wall system.

In various embodiments, individual modules of a system may includeirrigation segments configured to couple to other irrigation segments ofthe other modules (e.g., integrated inline drip irrigation conduit ofmodule in FIG. 6 may be coupled with another similarly configuredintegrated inline drip irrigation conduit of another module). Theirrigation segment may be an integrated section of plastic tubing toconvey water to the plants between the fabric arrangement. In variousembodiments, the irrigation system may allow the fabric arrangement tobe watered more evenly. For example, the irrigation system may bedistributed in the living wall system so that manual watering is notrequired and/or so that bottom portions of the living wall system do nothave to rely on water trickling down the wall system. The irrigationsystem may include a basin, drip pan, or the like, to capture water thandrips from the bottom of the modular living wall system. The capturedwater may be re-used by the irrigation system for watering the modularliving wall system. In various embodiments, the irrigation system mayinclude a feed line fluidly coupled to the basin, drip pan, or the like,such that the captured water can be used for watering the living wallsystem. See FIGS. 10-15.

FIGS. 10-15 illustrate components of a basin assembly of the modularliving wall module, in accordance with various embodiments of thepresent invention. The irrigation system may include components of thebasin assembly described in connection with FIGS. 10-15 according tovarious embodiments. FIG. 10 illustrates a left piece of a basinassembly, FIG. 11 illustrates a center piece of a basin assembly, FIG.12 illustrates a right piece of a basin assembly, FIG. 13 illustratesleft, center, and right gravel trays of a basin assembly, FIG. 14illustrates a waterproofing tray of a basin assembly, FIG. 15illustrates a basin bracket, leaf clasp, and door of a basin assembly.In various embodiments, the components of FIGS. 10-15 may be made from16-ga to 18-ga steel sheet metal. The left and center gravel trays ofFIG. 13 may have thru-holes on a bottom portion. The components of FIGS.10-15 may include other materials, dimensions, or configurations inother embodiments.

In various embodiments, the modular living wall system may include anexternal frame configured to mount about the periphery of one or more ofthe individual modules, or around a structure comprising multipleindividual modules. In various embodiments, the external frame mayfunction to hide the underlying frame components. In variousembodiments, the external frame may function to add rigidity to themodular living wall system.

In various embodiments, multiple modules coupled together (e.g., a firstmodule and a second module) may define a perimeter, and an exteriorframe may be coupled to the coupled modules about the perimeter. Invarious embodiments, the external frame may function to hide theunderlying frame components (the rails or the edges of the fabricarrangement, for example). In various embodiments, the external framemay function to add rigidity to the modular living wall system. SeeFIGS. 16-18.

FIGS. 16-18 illustrate frame elements that enclose or finish the modulecomponents of the modular living wall system, in accordance with variousembodiments of the present invention. FIG. 16 illustrates a perforatedwall tab, trim side tab, and trim front tab, FIG. 17 illustrates leftand right perforated walls, and FIG. 18 illustrates left and right trimpieces. In various embodiments, the components of FIGS. 16-18 may bemade from 18-ga steel sheet metal. A flat pattern may be identical forthe left and right gravel trays of FIG. 17 and for left and right trimpieces of FIG. 18. The components of FIGS. 16-18 may include othermaterials, dimensions, or configurations in other embodiments. Althoughthe Figures may be depict scaling (e.g., ½″=1″, ¼″=1″, etc.) inconnection with the described components, the components may have otherdimensions than depicted in other embodiments.

FIG. 19 illustrates a configuration for a metal support frame to railwith clip and basin, in accordance with various embodiments of thepresent invention. Features of FIG. 19 may comport with otherembodiments described herein. For example, the metal support frame maycomport with embodiments described in connection with the underlyingframe structure herein and the basin may comport with embodimentsdescribed in connection with a basin assembly described herein. Althoughthe framework depicted in FIG. 19 is fastened together using rivets, inother embodiments joints may be coupled together using other suitablefasteners.

Although certain embodiments have been illustrated and described hereinfor purposes of description of the preferred embodiment, it will beappreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art that a wide variety ofalternate and/or equivalent embodiments or implementations calculated toachieve the same purposes may be substituted for the embodiments shownand described without departing from the scope of the present invention.Those with skill in the art will readily appreciate that embodiments inaccordance with the present invention may be implemented in a very widevariety of ways. This application is intended to cover any adaptationsor variations of the embodiments discussed herein. Therefore, it ismanifestly intended that embodiments in accordance with the presentinvention be limited only by the claims and the equivalents thereof.

What is claimed is:
 1. A module for a living wall system for growingplants, the module including: a frame including a plurality of rails,each rail coupled to another rail by their respective ends; and a fabricarrangement mounted onto the frame and including a first fabric and asecond fabric overlaying the first fabric, wherein the first fabric is ahydrophilic mat, and wherein the second fabric includes at least oneopening exposing the first fabric and configured to receive a plant, thesecond fabric is a hydrophilic mat, and the second fabric comprises ahydrophilic layer, an open cell foam layer overlaying the hydrophiliclayer, and a perforated membrane overlaying the hydrophilic layer suchthat the open cell foam layer is between the hydrophilic layer and theperforated membrane, wherein the second fabric is arranged such that thehydrophilic layer abuts the first fabric.
 2. The module of claim 1,wherein the fabric arrangement is mounted onto the frame by a pluralityof rivets.
 3. The module of claim 1, wherein the frame includes fourrails coupled to each other to form a substantially rectangular shape.4. The module of claim 1, wherein the module is a first module, andwherein the module is configured to couple to a second module such thata rail of the first module abuts a rail of the second module.
 5. Themodule of claim 4, wherein the first module includes an irrigationsegment configured to couple to another irrigation segment of the secondmodule.
 6. The module of claim 1, wherein an edge of the first fabric iscoupled to an edge of the second fabric, and wherein the edges of thefirst fabric and the second fabric are coupled to the frame.
 7. Themodule of claim 6, wherein a body of the first fabric is separate from abody of the second fabric.
 8. A living wall system for growing plants,the system including: a first module and a second module coupled to eachother, the first and second modules including: an underlying frameincluding a plurality of rails, each rail coupled to another rail bytheir respective ends; and a fabric arrangement mounted onto theunderlying frame and including a first fabric and a second fabricoverlaying the first fabric, wherein the first fabric is a hydrophilicmat, and wherein the second fabric includes at least one openingexposing the first fabric and configured to receive a plant, the secondfabric is a hydrophilic mat, and the second fabric comprises ahydrophilic layer, an open cell foam layer overlaying the hydrophiliclayer, and a perforated membrane overlaying the hydrophilic layer suchthat the open cell foam layer is between the hydrophilic layer and theperforated membrane, wherein the second fabric is arranged such that thehydrophilic layer abuts the first fabric; and an irrigation systemincluding a first irrigation segment integrated into the first moduleand a second irrigation segment integrated into the second module,wherein the first irrigation segment and the second irrigation segmentare coupled to each other.
 9. The system of claim 8, wherein the firstmodule and the second module define a perimeter, and wherein the systemfurther comprises an exterior frame overlaying the perimeter.
 10. Thesystem of claim 8, wherein the first module interlocks with the secondmodule.
 11. The system of claim 8, wherein the first module is coupledwith the second module such that the rail of the first module abuts therail of the second module.
 12. The system of claim 8, further comprisingthird or more modules that are each configured with an underlying frameand a fabric arrangement as the first and second modules, wherein theirrigation system further includes third or more irrigation segmentscorresponding with the third or more modules, the third or moreirrigation segments being integrated into the third or more modules andcoupled together with the first irrigation segment and the secondirrigation segment.
 13. The system of claim 8, wherein the second fabricconsists of a hydrophilic mat having a thickness that is greater than athickness of the hydrophilic mat of the first fabric.
 14. The system ofclaim 8, wherein the system is an interior system.
 15. The system ofclaim 8, wherein: the at least one opening in the second fabric is oneopening of a plurality of openings formed in the second fabric; eachopening of the plurality of openings is configured to receive one ormore plants; and a body of the first fabric is separate from a body ofthe second fabric to allow roots of the one or more plants room to growand expand between separate opening of the plurality of openings in eachof the first module and the second module.
 16. The system of claim 8,wherein the first fabric and the second fabric is treated or formulatedto reduce algae and microbial growth.